Good Friday, we know. And Easter most certainly. But what is Maundy Thursday? Maundy Thursday is the Thursday before Easter, believed to be the day when Jesus celebrated his final Passover with His disciples. Most notably, that Passover meal was when Jesus washed the feet of His disciples in an extraordinary display of humility. He then commanded them to do the same for each other.

Jesus’ “mandate” is commemorated on Maundy Thursday – “maundy” being a shortened form of mandatum (Latin), which means “command.” It was on the Thursday of Christ’s final week before being crucified and resurrected that He said these words to his disciples:

“I give you a new command. Love one another. You must love one another, just as I have loved you. If you love one another, everyone will know you are my disciples.”

John 13:34-35

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Philippians 2:3-11

Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross – the true meaning of Easter – is full of symbolisms. One of the most awe-inspiring is the tearing of the temple veil in two.

The temple in Jerusalem was the center of Jewish religious life, the place where animal sacrifices were carried out and worship according to the Law of Moses was followed faithfully. A huge curtain (approximately 60 feet high and four inches thick!) separated the Holy of Holies—the earthly dwelling place of God’s presence—from the rest of the temple where men dwelt. This signified that man was separated from God by sin (Isaiah 59:1-2). Only the high priest was permitted to pass beyond this veil once each year (Exodus 30:10; Hebrews 9:7) to enter into God’s presence for all of Israel and make atonement for their sins (Leviticus 16).

“And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom” (Matthew 27:50-51a).

Why is this so incredible? First, no human could’ve achieved this feat of strength! Above all, it dramatically symbolized that His sacrifice, the shedding of His own blood, was a sufficient atonement for sins. It signified that now the way into the Holy of Holies was open for all people, including you and me!

When the veil was torn, God moved out of that place never again to dwell in a temple made with hands (Acts 17:24). God was through with that temple and its religious system. A new covenant was being established (Hebrews 8:13)!

The veil was symbolic of Christ Himself as the only way to the Father (John 14:6). The high priest had to enter the Holy of Holies through the veil. Now Christ is our superior High Priest, and as believers in His finished work, we can now enter the Holy of Holies through Him. Hebrews 10:19-20 says, “we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body.” Here we see the image of Jesus’ flesh being torn for us just as He was tearing the veil for us.

The veil being torn from top to bottom is a fact of history. The Old Testament temple was a shadow of things to come, and they all ultimately point us to Jesus Christ. Through His death the faithful now have free access to God.

The veil in the temple was a constant reminder that sin renders humanity unfit for the presence of God. The fact that the sin offering was offered annually and countless other sacrifices repeated daily showed graphically that sin could not truly be atoned for or erased by mere animal sacrifices. Jesus Christ, through His death, has removed the barriers between God and man, and now we may approach Him with confidence and boldness (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Praise God that He took care of everything we need, and even illustrated it through the many astonishing symbolisms of Easter!

Holy Week – thinking about the overwhelming sacrifice that our Lord Jesus willingly gave for us during the Passion – the short final period beginning with his triumphal entry into Jerusalem and ending with his crucifixion and his death on Good Friday.

”No other place displays the griefs of Christ like this, and no other moment at Calvary is so full of agony as when His cry rends the air—”My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” At this moment physical weakness was united with acute mental torture from the shame and ignominy (public shame or disgrace) through which He had to pass; His grief culminated in suffering the spiritual agony beyond all telling that resulted from the departure of His Father’s presence. This was the black midnight of His horror–when He descended the abyss of suffering.” A. Begg

“A Christian is not a man who never goes wrong, but a man is enabled to repent and pick himself up and begin over again after each stumble–because the Christ-life is inside him, repairing him all the time.”—CS Lewis

“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires… but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life… For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.”

Romans 6:12-14

“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 3:13-14

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

“Trying to live as a Christian while God is at the margins is a miserable life. You were not made to be central, while God is marginal. You were made to make God central.” ~ John Piper

“Then he said to them all: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.” Like 9:23,24.

“What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.” Philippians 3:8

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Galatians 2:20

“He must become greater; I must become less.” John 3:30

“Lord, be glorified in the way you love me today. May you be lifted up and made famous because others are able to see how deep, how wide, how long and how high your actions are to pour out your love toward me, protect me and provide for me. You are the Great Provider and the Omnipotent, Omniscient, Almighty God of the universe. And yet you go to such great lengths to prove your love for me – you are the Lover of My Soul! Only you know the depths of my need for you. And you are faithful and strong to meet every need – yes, you even delight in doing so! As much as you are made famous in my worship of you, you are even more glorified in how you love me! Enable me to see that love with greater understanding, and be a mirror to show it to others as you affect my life today. For your glory and fame, Amen!”

“Some day in the future, Jesus will come back to earth! He will descend from heaven, bringing with Him the souls of those who have died in Christ. They will be united with their resurrected bodies, and believers who are still alive on the earth will be changed.

“For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”

1 Thessalonians 4:14-17

“Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?””

1 Corinthians 15:51-55

Then sanctification will be complete–spirit, soul, and body.  God Himself promises to bring it to pass. We’ll walk in His presence, spotless and without blame, for all eternity.

Knowing this, how will you live today? The promise of salvation isn’t meant just to give hope, but to spur us on to holy living!” ~ Charles Stanley.

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Galatians 2:20

“… your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

… And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. ’”

Matthew 6:10, 13

”It is hard enough to pray for crucifiction of the flesh, deliverance from evil, and filling of the Holy Spirit when we are besieged by a gigantic temptation. But it is doubly harder to pray these things when our spirits are dry, we don’t “feel spiritual” or we seem satisfied in our carnal mindset. But it is also doubly important then, if for no other reason than that is where it seems that at least half of life is lived for the average believer.

May we grow in our devotion to God and all things glorifying to Him, no matter our outward circumstances or inner emotions.”

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”

2 Peter 1:3-4 )

I’m so grateful for a God who discloses Himself to us. We

don’t have to be in the dark about our Father’s business – His Kingdom, His purpose and calling on our lives…

“I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” (John 15:15 NIV)

Every time Jesus taught in a parable, He pulled His disciples – His friends – aside and revealed to them the true meaning of His words and heart. It’s important to note that not everyone who heard His parables really understood them. But the disciples did. Imagine the trust that developed as they shared meals with Jesus, walked with Him, were vulnerable with Him, and both failed and had victories in front of Him. Is it any wonder they had full advantage of His revelation as trusted friends and faithful followers?

As friends of God, we can ask in faith for Him to reveal the secrets of eternity to us – the mystery of His will…

“…he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,” (Ephesians 1:9 NIV)

Our part in this process is to STAY CLOSE. Servants don’t get the opportunity of close proximity to their master. Sons and daughters, however, do. We can arrange our schedule, challenge our thoughts, and direct our focus on Jesus. Don’t allow yourself to be angry with God for not revealing Himself due to a casual and uncommitted attitude about connecting with Him. We can show up early to seek Him. We don’t have to earn the right to be in His presence, but we do have to actually show up to take full advantage of His generosity.

We can be sure that our Heavenly Father hears us, and will reveal to us, His beloved sons and daughters, as He chooses to disclose, and in His time. We can come to Jesus in prayer with our questions about our past, present, and future. Trust Him to reveal to you His Father’s purpose in the questions of life. He is the God who reveals Himself in great measure.

~ Kirk Henderson

How Religion Works: If I obey, then God will love and accept me.

The Gospel: I’m loved and accepted, therefore I wish to obey.

~ Timothy Keller